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Saturday, Nov 13, 2004

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National

Kashmir parties welcome announcement

By Shujaat Bukhari

SRINAGAR, NOV. 12. Except for the hardline separatist leader, Syed Ali Geelani, most of the separatist and mainstream political parties in Jammu and Kashmir have welcomed the Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh's announcement of troop reduction in the State.

Moulana Abbas Ansari, leader of the moderate faction of the Hurriyat Conference, said: "It is a good step that the Government of India is reducing troops." But he added that the troops, whether big or small, does not matter. What matters is their behaviour and how they treat people, he said referring to last week's incident at Handwara where an Army Major had allegedly raped a mother and her daughter. Mirwaiz Umar Farooq said "the Hurriyat executive will meet soon and discuss the matter threadbare".

However, Sajjad Lone, chief of the People's Conference, said he would wait for the feel of the announcement. "Let us see whether the troops are reduced in practice," he said.

Shabir Ahmed, chief of the Democratic Freedom Party, said, "If troops reduction means withdrawing at least half of the forces,it is a welcome development and a first concession by India." But "If soldiers are withdrawn from the borders and placed back in their barracks, it will not do any good."

The Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Forum chairman, Javed Mir, said, "if it is part of a step-by-step solution to Kashmir problem we welcome it."

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